The Government should exempt educational products meant for use by school and college students from both Central and State taxes, industry body Assocham said on Wednesday.

This would promote education and make available educational aids at an affordable cost, particularly to the lower economic strata, the statement said.

The chamber further suggested that products for educational purposes such as notebooks, and pencils should be exempt from Goods and Services Tax.

At present, such products are subject to two per cent excise duty (without CENVAT credit) plus education cess. Moreover, most of these products are charged state value added tax (VAT) at five per cent.

Ahead of the upcoming Budget, Assocham also suggested increasing the budget allocation for education sector, easing education loan availability, floating policies to attract foreign investors to improve education infrastructure, facilitating foreign universities' participation, and offering incentives to enhance female enrolment across states.

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